Everybody's Fool
by Lightning Sage
Summary: Everybody always thought that Yagami Raito was the perfect human being. Who knew such a “perfect” child could turn into an obsessive, homicidal maniac?


My first Death Note fic. Reviews would be awesome.

This story was inspired by the Evanescence song, "Everybody's Fool." If you would like to read this piece in its original songfic form, please check my profile to find links to my AFF account.

Disclaimer: The characters from Death Note do not belong to me. I do not make money off of this story.

Warning: Spoilers, drabble-ish

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_**Everybody's Fool**_

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_L's Point of View_

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Everyone always said Yagami Raito was the perfect human being.

During his childhood, all of the mothers exclaimed how lucky the elder Yagamis—Raito's parents—were to have such a bright, well-behaved, and intelligent child.

In his adolescent years, Yagami Raito rose to the top of his class. Starting in middle school, he even began helping out his father in criminal investigations. The teen had a sharp eye and a phenomenal memory—which were both instrumental in his ability to analyze the evidence presented to him and draw conclusions with astonishing speed and accuracy.

It was clear that Yagami reveled in the attention he got for his exceptional performance. Parents, teachers, _everyone_—they all commended him for his accomplishments.

I suppose it makes sense that Yagami Raito was an egotistical brat.

The constant praise he received from everyone throughout his lifetime…it only served to fuel his delusions of grandeur.

Who knew such a "perfect" child could turn into an obsessive, homicidal maniac?

Do not misunderstand me—Yagami Raito truly believed that what he was doing—killing criminals with the Death Note—was the right thing to do. But how was his murder of those criminals any different than the murders that they had committed?

Did Yagami Raito every truly understand the magnitude of his actions?

He had everybody fooled with his carefully planned appearance and his perfectly executed lies. He knew he had everybody fooled.

Except me.

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The Kira case exploded with popularity on the Internet within a very short period of time. It was quite seldom that the public took such a strong interest in a criminal investigation. Hundreds, no, thousands of websites and forums were created in relation to Kira—some discussed possible Kira suspects, some conversed about Kira's ideals—some even claimed to be the Great Kira and asked for everyone to join him in his cause.

In a matter of weeks, Yagami Raito had created a substantial following. Many believed Kira to be a savior…a God, even. They were every bit as deluded as Kira himself.

How ironic it is that Yagami Raito was every bit as human—if not, more so—as the rest of us. As much as he tried to give the image of perfection, the reality is that he was a terribly misguided soul in the population of humanity…and as more time went on, he became less and less human.

Killing as many people as Raito did…it dehumanized him.

By the time he got around to killing me, he had murdered so many people that the fact that he knew me personally didn't faze him at all.

In fact, as I lay dying, he was grinning that maniacal, satanic grin.

Of course, he played the angry and distraught friend role perfectly for the rest of the investigation team.

It was at that point, in my own death, that I had confirmed, without a doubt, that Yagami Raito was indeed Kira.

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When Yagami Raito was finally revealed as Kira to the investigation team, hell broke loose. At that point, Yagami Raito was no more. He had been completely replaced by Kira.

Kira was more deranged than ever—his last feeble attempts to kill everyone using the Death Note scrap in his wrist watch were thwarted by a hysterical Matsuda, no less.

Kira's breaths were numbered.

Kira's final moments were quite pathetic, actually. He had already taken several bullets to his torso—courtesy of Matsuda—and one had completely destroyed his right hand. He begged the shinigami to save him. He begged the demon to write down the names of the men in the room who opposed his cause.

But the shinigami betrayed him.

The name Yagami Raito had been etched into the Death Note. The Great Kira would die of a heart attack, the same way he himself had punished countless criminals.

Kira screamed and pleaded for his life. It was pitiful. Yagami Raito—the perfect human being with so much potential to lead a productive and successful life—reduced to the frantic shrieks and desperation of a raging madman. The adolescent boy who dreamed of a perfect world, a utopia without crime—became the greatest criminal of all time, worse than the ones he pledged to destroy.

The Death Note ruined Yagami Raito.

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**owari (?)**

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Not sure if I should continue this. It stands on its own as a one-shot…but if a lot of people tell me they like it, I wouldn't mind writing another part.

Maybe more ; )


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